The Consensys CEO emphasized that the Ethereum Foundation should concentrate on preserving the network's fundamental technology and principles.
By Margaux Nijkerk|Edited by Sheldon Reback Jun 7, 2026, 1:00 p.m. 3 min readMake preferred on Joe Lubin (CoinDesk)Key Points:
- Joe Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum, defended the foundation against criticism regarding recent budget reductions, staff exits, and organizational restructuring, asserting that these changes are essential for maintaining a focus on Ethereum's core technology and neutrality.
- He indicated that Ethereum's growth will be driven by a diverse ecosystem of organizations engaged in adoption and institutional involvement, while trends like AI-driven "agentic commerce" could catalyze the next phase of development for the network.
Recent budget reductions, staff exits, and leadership transitions at the Ethereum Foundation have sparked criticism from segments of the blockchain community. However, Joe Lubin, who played a role in its establishment and is now the CEO of Consensys, maintains that these adjustments represent a necessary evolution rather than a crisis.
Although he does not hold a position at the foundation, Lubin remarked to CoinDesk that the organization's role should be more limited and concentrated on the stewardship of the network's core technology and values, while other entities handle adoption and ecosystem growth.
"It's crucial for the Ethereum Foundation to maintain credible neutrality," Lubin stated during an interview. "The potential for conflicts of interest between business interests and developers is not a credible way to manage your decentralized protocol ecosystem."
These remarks follow weeks of discussions about the foundation's trajectory. Detractors have questioned the organization's responsiveness to competitive challenges and its ability to strengthen Ethereum's market standing, while others have raised alarms over staff departures and restructuring.
Lubin suggested that many of these worries arise from a misunderstanding of the foundation's intended role within the blockchain, which processes roughly 2 million transactions daily, as per Etherscan data.
"What’s occurring at the EF is essentially a cleanup," he stated, referring to efforts to delineate protocol stewardship from commercialization and business development.
Lubin envisions Ethereum's future being shaped by multiple organizations rather than a single leading entity.
"It will become evident that there will be several key nodes acting as stewards of the Ethereum ecosystem, each excelling in different areas or specialties within the ecosystem," he noted.
This approach contrasts with other blockchains, where protocol advancement and commercial strategy are typically unified. Lubin emphasized that Ethereum's decentralized structure necessitates a more distributed institutional framework.
He also countered the perception that Ethereum is experiencing a downturn. "Ethereum is not in decline, not at all," he asserted.
Nonetheless, Ethereum and the broader crypto sector are contending with a new competitor for investment and funding, as artificial intelligence has taken center stage as the leading technological narrative in recent times, he remarked.
"We were once the trendsetters, the exciting innovators in the economy and society. Currently, we are not in the spotlight regarding capital inflows or investments," he added.
However, Lubin believes that Ethereum's long-term focus on enhancing infrastructure is positioning the network for a new wave of adoption.
He pointed out emerging trends such as autonomous AI agents conducting on-chain transactions and increasing institutional adoption of Ethereum-based infrastructure.
"The next significant wave will be agentic commerce, where the hybrid human-machine economy starts utilizing our infrastructure," Lubin stated.
According to Lubin, these new use cases highlight why the Ethereum Foundation is narrowing its focus. He argued that as new organizations take on responsibilities for adoption and commercialization, the foundation's mission should remain centered on the protocol itself, ensuring it can support the next generation of activities built on it.
Read more: Why the Ethereum Foundation is suddenly again at the center of crypto’s culture war
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What to know:
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